Theresa May

"At this moment of enormous national significance, there should be unity here in Westminster," Theresa May said in the surprise announcement, as the U.K. prepares to leave the European Union.

"This is an historic moment, from which there can be no turning back. Britain is leaving the European Union," British Prime Minister Theresa May tells the House of Commons.

Lawmakers gave First Minister Nicola Sturgeon the power to pursue a referendum on independence — Scotland's second in several years. The move sets up a showdown with the U.K. government.

Prime Minister Theresa May said at a news conference that she was convinced a trade deal was in the national interest of both countries. She also said Trump confirmed he is "100 percent behind NATO."

The prime minister's office says the ruling "does nothing to change" its timetable of leaving the economic union by the end of March.

The British prime minister said in a speech on Tuesday that she plans for the United Kingdom to walk away from the European Union's single market and unified court system.

In a rare break in relations between the U.S. and Great Britain, Prime Minister Theresa May was reportedly critical of John Kerry's speech that condemned Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said leaving the European Union would make the U.K. an "independent sovereign nation." After it officially begins, the Brexit negotiations will take two years.